by Christopher Marlowe (1564 - 1593)

Language: English 
Our translations:  GER
Come live with me and be my Love,
And we will all the pleasures prove
That hill and valley, dale and field,
And all the craggy mountains yield.

There will we sit upon the rocks
And see the shepherds feed their flocks,
By shallow rivers, to whose falls
Melodious birds sing madrigals.
And if these pleasures may thee move,
Then live with me and be my love.

There will I make thee beds of roses
With a thousand fragrant posies,
A cap of flowers, and a kirtle
Embroider'd all with leaves of myrtle.

 ... 

The shepherd swains shall dance and sing
For thy delight each May-morning:
If these delights thy mind may move,
Then live with me and be my Love.

See Raleigh's famous response, The nymph's reply to the shepherd.

See also the parody by Archibald Stodart-Walker.

Composition:

Text Authorship:

  • by Christopher Marlowe (1564 - 1593), "The passionate shepherd to his love", written 1580-1592?

See other settings of this text.

Available translations, adaptations or excerpts, and transliterations (if applicable):

  • GER German (Deutsch) [singable] (Walter A. Aue) , "Der feurige Schäfer zu seiner Liebsten", copyright © 2010, (re)printed on this website with kind permission
  • GER German (Deutsch) (Adolf von Marées) , "Der Schäfer an sein Lieb"


Researcher for this text: Emily Ezust [Administrator]

This text was added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.
Line count: 28
Word count: 185